The Orient Express, murder on part 1 ch 1 through part 2 ch 8

part 1 ch 1 an important passenger on the Taurus experss

The Taurus express is a train that goes from Syria to Stamboul. Poirot is on the train with a couple English people. A man that's been in India and a Lady that's been a governess in Bagdhad. They appear to be having a bit of a fling. There's a little bit of worry from the lady at one point when the train has to stop that they'll be significantly delayed because the train is scheduled to get in at 6.55 pm Monday evening and she has another train she has to catch at 9 pm. The orient express.  No need to worry, the delay was only 10 minutes and they got there with plenty of time for her to catch her train.

part 1 ch 2 The toklatlian Hotel

This chapter is badly named.  It's named for the hotel Poirot had planned to stay at for a  few days to be a tourist in Stamboul.  But he gets a telegraph tellinghim he needs to get bak to london.  So he gets on the orient express heading to London.  There's drama.

part 1 ch 3 Poirot refuses a case

Poirot has a room mate cause the train is full.  They go to breakfast together.  Poirot notices the lady and man from the previous train are there but not dining together.  Perhaps the budding romance didn't bloom.  Or perhaps they're very interested in each other but practicing some decorum.  A mr rachet comes to Poroit and overs him $20,000 to take teh case to protect him.  Poirot is on the way to a case that interests him and he refuses to take Mr rachet's casue because he doesn't like his face.

part 1 ch 4 a cry in the night

Poirot gets off the train in Belgrade.  Not for long cuase it's FRICKIN FREEZING and when he gets back on the train he's told tht his stuff has been moved from compartment 7 to compartment 1.  The guy in compartment 1 has moved to the new train car that got added on.  It was a part of the train that came in from Athens.  Poirot goes to his old compartment to talk to his old room mate.  He had thought that Poirot hasd left the train cause Poirot did tell him he was going to get off for a bit and then all of a sudden his stuff was gone.  Poriot explains the whole deal.  Poirot talks to an old lady whos int he compartmnet across the hall from rachet's.  Poirot goes to his new compartment, which turns out to be the compartment that is next to Rachet's. 

part 1 ch 5 the crime

They're stopped.  I don't remember why.  People don't love it.  Then it's reported that there was a murder.  it was mr rachet and he was stabbed A LOT.  Somebody says it msut have been a woman cause only women do that much stabbing.  A man would have just stabbed something omportant and moved on.  someobody's all like, we gotta solve this thing or the slavics are gonna inconvenience us.  So Poirot is all like, fine, let's solve this crime.

part 1 ch 6 a woman

Michael Bouc has inserted himself into the investigation with Poirot.  The conductor brings Poirot all of the passengers passposrts and Poirot askes to see Mr Rachet's assistant Mr Mac Queeen. Poirot asks Michael to leave.  So maybe he hasn't quite as forcefully inserted himself into things as I thought.  Mr mac queen talks about how Mr rachet had received some threatening letter.  He brings the letters to Poirot.  They're sure threatening.  Poirot  thinks they were written very carefully with different people writing different letters in each word so that none of the hand writing would be identifyable as a single person's.  Mr Mac Queen admins he doesn't know much about Mr. Rachet's past or anything.  He met him in Persia when he was there working for an oil company.  He says he doesn't think tht Mr Rachet is his real name and he thinks he fled America cause of some trouble and these letters are that trouble catching up with him.  Once again, the idea tht it might have been a woman because the number of stab wounds makes them think it's a personal emotional situation.

part 1 ch 7 the body.

Poirot and the doctor examine Mr Rachet's room and body.  His window was open and Poirot thinks the killer wanted people to think he had fled through the window.  Poirot thinks this is very dumb because of all the snow.  Like the killer came up with this brilliant open window idea at some point and then didn't bother to adjust for the face that no one would have fled through that window into a billzard.  There's other clues but Poirot doesn't really trust them.  He feels like there's either a man that did the crime and made it look like a woman did it or a woman that did it trying to make it loook like a man did it.  There's some shenhannegans with a hat box and he finds a piece of paprer with Elizabeth Armstrong written on it.  From this one thing he claims he knows things all of a sudden in that Poirot kinda way, which explains nothing to you the reader.  The doctor is all like "oh yeah, I heard about this business in America."

part 1 ch 8 the armstrong kidnapping case

They think Ratchet was really a guy named Cassetti who was responsible for the kidnapping and death of Daisy Armstrong the three year old grand daughter of some rich guy.  So they think they know the why and how.  Now they need to figure out who.

Part 2 CH 1 the evidence of the wagon lit conductor

They're interviewing people in the dining room car.  They first interview Pierre Michale the wagon lit conductor.  I guess he's like the train version of a flight attendant.  They go over a bunch of scruff we already know.  Poirot tells him to leave and is not under suspicion.

Part 2 CH 2 the evidence of the secretary.

Poirot talks to Rachet's secretary Mr MacQueen.  Poirot tells MacQueen that Rachet is really CAssetti.  Turns out MacQueen's dad was the DA on the Daisy Armstrong case.  So MacQueen is happy to see Cassetti dead.  He couldn't have done it though becuase he spent his time til 2 am with the british guy that's been in India.  They got out together for a bit at a stop and then didn't lock the door on their way back in.  So it's entirely possible someone got on the train behind them through that door.  The only people they saw pass them during their time together were the conductor and a lady that couldn't identify.

part 2 ch 3 Evidence of the valet

Rachet has another employee.  He's a valet.  Poiroit asks if he smokes a pipe and he says no.  He wasn't too fond of Mr Rachet.  He wasn't against him, but not hugely suprised to find out that he turned out to be a bad dude and that someone murdered him.  He didn't sleep well that night cause he had a tooth ache.  He's in the same room as the big Italian and says he didn't leave the room that night.

part 2 ch 4 the amaerican woman

The american woman is mrs. Hubbard.  She swears there was a man in her room.  She didn't see him becuase instead of looking at him or screaming or anything she hid under the covers.  So she's a super useful person.  She pressed the button to call the conductor.  I don't know what an English conductor is.  In American, the conductor is the guy that drives the drain and blows the whistle and what not.  I'll ask about that in book club.  The conductor comes and turns on the light and there's no man there.  But the door to the next compartment is unlocked.  Who's compartment?  Mr Rachet's.  Maybe there was a man in her room and he snuck into Mr Rachet's room and murdered him.  As with every other witness, Poirot tells her that Mr rachet is Cassetti who was in charge of the Daisy Armstrong murder.  Her first thought was, what will my daughter say when I tell her.  Then she also mentions that last night she heard a woman in Mr Rachet's room.

part 2 ch 5 the sweedish lady

The sweedish lady does not have a scarlett comono.  That's what someobdy said they saw a lady going down the hall wearing near the time of the murder.  She says her room mate (the governess from bagdad) doesn't either.  The sweedish lady is going home for the holidays.  M. Bouc and Poirot look over a timeline together.  M. Boac thinks the big italian is the murderer.  Poirot points out that according to the testimoni of the valet, this can't be.

part 2 ch 6 the russian princess

This chapter starts with them talking to Pierre Micheal becuase  abutton was found in the sweedish lady's compartment that matches his.  He did go to her compartment so they're thinking maybe he dropped the button or the murdered had the button.  But all his buttons are accounted for.  Each train car has a conductor and they wear the same uniforms and the other two conductors come in to A) vouge for Pierre Michels' wearabouts at the time of the murder and B) show that all their buttons are accounted for.  They then interview Natalia Dragmiroff.  She lives in Paris.  Her room mate is her maid HIldegarde Schmidt and she's been with her for fifteen years.  They talk about how Mr. Rachet was responsible for Daisy Armstrong's death and Natalia tells Poirot that she was good friends with Linda Arden, Daisy's grand mother.  So another person with a direct connection.

part 2 ch 7 Count and countes Andrenyi

The count straight away tells Poirot that he and his wife will be of no use.  They were asleep during the murder.  The count doesn't react to the news that ratchet was responsible for daisy Armstrong's murder.  He says it's unnecessary to interview his wife.  Poirot insists.  He asks her if the count smokes a pipe and what color her dressing gown is like he's done with everyone else.  Once again m Bouc suggests they interview the big italian.

Part 2 Ch 8 colonel arbuthnot 

Colonel Arbuthnot spent the bulk of the evening discussing world politics with Mr ratchets Secretary.  They were so engrossed in their talk that it was nearly two am before he went to bed.  He does smoke a pipe.  He smelled a woman going by between one and two wearing fruity perfume.  Also when he left the fellow in 16 had his door open and quickly closed it when he saw the colonel.